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pass labs xa30.5 vs aleph 3

Stereophile reveiwer Erick Lichte has done a head to head review of these pass amps in August 2009 issue. Erick uses the aleph 3 as his main amp feeding a pair or Revel f30 speakers, he also uses Benchmark Dac1 to feed the alpeh as I do as well. He was asked to do a comparison between the pass amps as a follow up to the great reveiw of the xa30.5 which was reviewed by Brian Damkroger in which,I quote "absolutely, positively,and enthusiasticallly recommended" the xa30.5 and, Brian sounds like he perfers high powered amps in the review. In the review Erick thought the Xa30.5 sounded more resolving and a little bit better bass control and can sound louder than the 30 watts. It was leaner in the midbass than the aleph 3 but, had a slightly more presents in the top three octave. he still is in love with is aleph 3 and sound like he is not planning on replacing the aleph 3 with the xa30.5. Anyways I have been waiting for a head to head review of these pass amps since the xa30.5 was released. If anyone would like to see the head to head review send me an email and I will take a high res pictures of the artical and send it to anyone. Also Erick Lichte did a head to head review of the Musical Fidelity's 550k supercharger amp and the Aleph 3 in a December 2008 issue. He concluded the aleph sounded better than the 550's by itself. He then supercharged his aleph 3 but did not like the sound. Very interesting articals about my beloved aleph 3, and a great read for aleph 3 owners. In my opinion the aleph 3 is still a giant killer and is a legend when it comes to amps.
tiverson2000
lickt
1 posts
 
Hi all,

Glad you enjoyed the review. Though the Aleph 3 is not my only amp, it is the amp that I listen to the most. I thought the comparison between the Aleph 3 (Pass' 30 w/p/c, Class A amp from the 90's) and the XA 30.5 (Pass' current 30 w/p/c Class A amp) would illuminate the evolution of Pass' sound and design. The article is in the August Stereophile.

Erick Lichte
peterayer
1,382 posts
 
Danielk141,
I can sum up my temperature experience with Pass Class A amps as follows:

Aleph 3 - very hot in small box
Aleph 2 - very hot in two larger boxes, so more total heat
XA160 - not as hot as Aleph 2, in two even larger boxes
XA100.5 - not as hot as XA160, in two large boxes

Hope that wasn't too confusing. Basically, the XA.5 is the coolest Pass Class A I've had. I can easily leave my hand on the top for long periods. The heatsinks get warm but can be touched for quite a while. The TAS review even stated that it is not hot for a Class A design. I can listen in the summer now with the windows closed, but the Aleph 2 forced me to open the windows in the Massachusetts summer. I actually preferred the look and size of the Aleph 2, but the sound of the XA.5. It is "quieter and cleaner", if that makes sense, and has much better control/grip over the lower frequencies - more robust. The overall sound is more balanced and coherent.
danielk141
489 posts
 
Peterayer,

Thanks for the detailed response. My Aleph 2s are the hottest running monoblocs I've owned. I will keep them until something better sounding comes along.
The last pair of used XA100.5s I saw here on Audiogon were $10.5K, that's a little more than I'm prepared to spend...
I wish I could demo a pair here in the Phoenix area..
I really like the Pass "Simpler is Better" philosophy.
I'm looking at a used Gamut stereo amp, unfortunately,
it isn't local.
greg_c
1 posts
 
great blog hapening here.
i am driving usher tiny dancers with the aleph 3 and been trying to get "more of the same" (because it's addictive), but from comments here and recent reviews, there doesn't seem to be anything to fit the bill without breaking the bank, especially down under in oztralia.
i've just come across the accuphase a30, which is also rated 30w class a and priced more than the xa30.5 - anyone have experience with it?
zybar's avatar
zybar
104 posts
 
FWIW, I own Atma-Sphere MA-1 amps and recently have borrowed my friend's Pass XA30.5 amp to see how it compares sonically.

From a heat perspective, there is absolutely no contest in which produces more heat - the MA-1's produce WAY MORE heat!! The MA-1's easily raise the temp 7-10 degrees in my 3500+ cubic foot room with two big openings, while the XA30.5 barely impacts the temp. Accordingly, the XA30.5 doesn't require anywhere near as much cooling as the MA-1's. So you play less to run and cool the XA30.5 than the MA-1's.

Unfortunately for me (and lucky for the power the company) the MA-1's sound a lot better and do more of what I like than the XA30.5, so they aren't going anywhere.

George
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